Philip Quade - Adventure-Travel Wire Australia

Coober Pedy

2012-02-14T01:05:00.000-08:00

Coober Pedy

I had grown fond of Alice Springs - and the entire Northern Territory - but the journey had to move forward.

Uluru, The West Mac's and Kata Tjuta, all left me with very exciting tales and memories, and I sure could have stayed much longer. But at the same time, I was eager for my next destination, the unknown, the mysterious opal mining town of Coober Pedy, SA.

The days were getting hotter and drier, and the thought of trekking 900Km across the desert with no water supplies along the way was less than appealing. South of Alice was met by flat, dry, plains. Rock and sand. Straight up desert.

While my time in C.P. was short, it was filled with fascinating encounters and events. Before arriving, I never would have thought I would find myself standing in the home and mines off the late Crocodile Harry - which was featured in Mad Max III: Beyond Thunderdome.

Two themes developed very quickly out there; 1. Opal mining - obviously; and 2. Film. Many well known (and some not so well known) films have been shot - at least in part, out in the areas surrounding Coober Pedy. Mad Max III, Priscilla Queen of the Desert, Pitch Black and Red Planet to name only a few, were all filmed quite close to the Aussie mining town. And I had the chance to stand "on location" where these films were shot. I even stood beside one of the shuttles from Pitch Black!

This town is mining, lain and simple. The opal drive still continues today, similar to how it did back in the beginning days - when a school boy on holidays could easily get swept up in the excitement and commotion and find himself some 40 years later still meaning to return home at some point. I kid you not. That was the reality for many of these guys, including my host, tour guide and life long miner "Uncle Jimmy", who arrived to Coober Pedy on a week-long school holiday trip, and decided three month later to call his parents to let them know he was staying put. Caught up in the hustle and bustle and the excitement that captured many hearts, as well as many lives.

Most opal mines in these areas are privately owned, and most mining is still commenced with hand operated equipment, burrowing through the ground. Anyone can get a permit to mine, you simply need to apply for a permit and your site pegs and away you go from what it looked like.

I tried my hand at "noodling" a few times - picking through piles of dirt and rock in search of opals - with what I though to be a decent amount of success. Mind you I sure didn't strike my fortune, but I walked away with a few nice shinny bits.

Since he entire town is situated in the middle of a desert, daytime temperatures can reach excruciating highs of up to 50°C. It is for this reason the the town is mainly built underground. The streets and main floors of many buildings sit above ground, but where typically buildings would be built upwards into the air, in Coober Pedy, the buildings recede into the ground - or are built by hollowing out side hills - allowing cooling of the buildings to be much easier, and offering considerable more protection from the elements. Our hostel for instance, was built like this. My room was located roughly 16' underground. It was very cool... No pun intended.

It is quite true that no visit to Coober Pedy is complete without stopping by John's Pizza Bar. I highly recommend the Emu pizza.

Ranger Tactical XTA-SURVIVOR 1 survival kit - Review

2011-12-28T12:15:00.000-08:00

Ranger Tactical XTA-SURVIVOR 1 survival kit

You never know when a good situation can turn bad. But when it does you need to be prepared.

The Ranger Tactical XTA-SURVIVOR 1 survival kit offers all the essentials to help ensure survival if things do turn for the worst.

     Includes: - Jets Sream Whistle
                   - Arctic Emergency Blanket
                   - 37-piece 1st aid kit
                   - Starflash Signal mirror
                   - Compass
                   - "Strikeforce" all weather fire starter w/"Wetfire" tinder

Contents are packed into a "Mil-Spec HD heavy duty military grade belt pouch". The pouch is versitile, and able to be worn horizontally or vertically, meaning you can place it exactly where you need it with no hassle.

While trekking across the outback I often found myself straying far from camp, and getting into some pretty sticky and intense situations, especially during rock climbing and tricky ascents in the West MacDonnell Ranges of the Northern Territory. I made sure to always have my kit on hand - some days, carrying it alone.

With some careful packing the pouch will also hold a standard 500ml water bottle - an absolute necessity when setting foot away from camp out there - which can allow you to get away with not carrying a full pack when you really want to get away from it all.

(Left) The kit I never left camp without. Knives and flashlight not included in kit, but all available from Ranger Tactical.

I also added a medium carabiner to the pouch for fast and easy access on and off of my belt or pack.

The pouch is still holding up strong eight months later, after taking quite a beating. Excellent abrasion resistance and high capacity in a kit that won't get in your way.

Thanks to Peter and Julie at Ranger Tactical for setting me up with this little lifesaver.

Check out this, and many other Survival kits and tools at www.rangertactical.com

Larapinta pt. 2

2011-12-20T19:49:00.000-08:00

Its been quite some time since I have properly updated you all on the journey. We left off at my departure into the West MacDonnell Mountain Ranges of the Norther Territory, north of Alice Springs. Although my original intention was to walk you day-by-day along my trek there, it doesn't seem to do justice to just how incredible the trek really was.

I would safely label that time as my life's biggest "You had to be there" moment.

With the Larapinta Trail as my guide I was gone 'walkabout' across some of the most amazing country I have ever seen.

I was over a week in the mountains, tackling 200km of mountains and valleys, gorges and river-flat plains, headed west towards the Tanami desert.

In a situation like this, proper water consumption should be priority (right up there with NOT getting bitten by snakes). On only day 2 of my trek I felt the effects of dehydration and heat stroke - only 49Km in. Not cool. I saw first hand just how easy it is to fall victim to dehydration, one of the leading causes of death in the Outback.

Drink little and drink often. Drinking too much water can be damaging just as under drinking can be. You can't afford to forget to drink enough in a situation like that. 28-32 degree days, a lot of ascent, and day after day of beating sun while you are constantly on the move.

My best bet would have been walking at night by the light of the moon. The skies were so clear that even a half moon would have given ample light to walk by, not to mention I was carrying so hefty fire power for lighting. But instead I kept to the light, waking early before sunrise and setting up my nights camp in the fading evening light. I made camp each day in the hottest hours of the afternoon. I would set up my tent and do my best to create at least some shade, which wasn't always easy.

One afternoon I stopped to make camp on a high ridge spanning mountain peaks, there were no trees, and almost no bush or scrub of any kind thanks to the bush fires. And with the sun directly overhead its hard to make any escape.

The only real shelter at that point was to pitch my tent - which was no cup of tea in the wind at 1100' on a 5m wide ridge - and use my sleeping bag to line the roof of the tent in order to cast at least a bit of shade to get myself out of direct sunlight. This method was pretty effective, however it doesn't compare to the shade of a nice big river gum. The down insulation held the heat in more than I would have liked, but it was good to get out of the sun!

My biggest concern throughout the trek, and across the whole country really, was mainly the snakes. And considering there are some 140 different species of land snakes in Australia, not to mention about another 32 water snakes, the odds of running into one in some of the places I went was a given. And boy I saw a lot. I was averaging 3 snakes a day in the mountains. Mainly browns(like the one to the left) thankfully. Though I did encounter one smaller python and what I believe may have been a small fierce snake - the most toxic species of land snake known to man. However, it is NOT the worlds most toxic venomous snake.

I was actually fairly impressed at how much surface water there was to be found across the West Mac's. Now mind you, a large portion of it was far from drinkable, however I did find a few water holes suitable for a refreshing swim, and apparently drinkable too! But there was a lot of tainted water out there, mucky, slime filled, orange-green-brown sludge pools. And at one point I thought I had found a nice little pool, possibly something I could filter and store for boiling, coming from an underground spring in the rocks at that. But... I am glad I took my time to check out the scene before I dove in. See the below picture.

Warning... the following images may make you squirmy and icky...

Yup, a kangaroo carcass had spoiled the waterhole.

This is something you need to be extremely careful about when searching for water. You can't be too careful when scouting the source of you water, making sure you aren't drinking from a stale source. But you must also be sure to inspect the area AROUND the water. Even though the majority of the roo was not in the water, it lay on a ledge above the water, and you can bet your boomerang there has been more than enough wash in to that pool to taint the water beyond salvage. On top of that, a skull in my drinking water is enough to turn me off as it is.

But these weren't the only "left-overs" I found around Oz; camels, cows, wild pigs, roos, wild goats. The camel bones looked like dinosaur bones, an exciting find out in the mountains.

My gear held up well, and I was more than impressed, especially with the performance of my shoes. I definitely stretched the capabilities and boundaries of my Ospray Atmos 50L pack though. Between my 5L of water, food rations and my gear I well exceeded the recommended weight to be carried in it - avg. 35Lbs. But it held together. I did feel the repercussions, and they weren't pretty, but it was one heck of a pounding test for it. That bag has been dropped, dragged, banged, tossed and everything in between and she still holds tough. Can't beat it.

Larapinta pt. 1

2011-11-05T13:28:00.000-07:00

Light smoke still lingered in the distance surrounding Alice Springs on the morning I set out for the Larapinta Trail.

I left just before first light, crossing town and making my way up the dry river bank to the trail head. My starting point was the old Alice Telegraph station, several Km north of town.

It was light by the time I reached the trail head. It was also very cool, but by that point I was used to the cool Aussie mornings. My goal for the day was to complete the near 24Km first section of the trail as far as Simpsons Gap.

I'll be honest, I really had no idea what to expect setting out. I was in for the long haul. Set to travel light. Set to travel fast. Leaving behind the majority of my gear, including my camp stove and water filter, I was traveling with more weight in water and emergency rations than gear! Not quite what I expected "light" to feel like.

Climbing out of the river banks, I set up across the rocky hillside, entering the West MacDonnell Mountain Ranges.

I remember thinking after the first two Km or so, "If it's all like this, I'll be out and back in no time." But I quickly found out that it definitely was not going to be that easy. The beginning of the trail is somewhat deceiving compared to what lay several Km in. But this hasn't been ranked as one of the worlds premier hiking trails for nothing. In fact, I had no idea what lay in store for me... not at all.

I would definitely urge anyone interested in hiking this tail to obtain a copy of the trail info pack (available online and at the Info Center in Alice Springs), and study it well. I had a copy. I glanced at it the night before setting out, read a few of the pointers they outlined, and tucked it away. I figured I would wing it for the most part. The trail was marked out... sort of. I had my bearing... West... ish. After all, whats adventure without a little surprise?

I had decided to pull up and make camp on the first day for lunch and a short rest at Wallaby Gap, about 13Km in. The hike to Wallaby Gap after crossing the Stuart Highway (what I considered to be my real entry into the wild from Alice) had been a constant slow ascent until reaching the base of Euro Ridge. It was quite a climb to the peak, where I had a great view of Alice Springs and the surrounding desert and mountains. What a view. Sitting with my feet dangling over the 750m cliff, I tried to work out where the path on the next ridge would lead down to my next rest point, and lunch! At Wallaby Gap.

From there the terrain flattened out a bit more, and it was smooth sailing for the next few Km before the push to reach Saddle Hill Hat. The ridge marked the final stretch of the day, with a gradual descent to Simpsons Gap.

The effects of the wildfires which had torn through the ranges were wide spread in every direction. But rather than just one constant strip of scorched hillside, what I experienced was huge patches of burnt area, followed by several hundred yards of fresh green growth, then more burn area. It definitely made for an interesting trek. Lots of areas (like the one shown in the picture to the left) are covered in chard shrubs shooting out of a bed of white ash, which completely covered the ground in areas.

I was exhausted when I reached the gap, dehydrated and ready for a solid nights rest. I knew I hadn't drank nearly enough water over the day, in fact no where near enough.

Until this point The Outback and I had been on fairly even ground, I had handled the terrain and changing elements well. But the West MacDonnells were quickly shaping up to be a whole new ball game. My toughest challenge yet? You bet ya! I hadn't felt this out of shape the whole trip, and considering it was only the end of day, it was seeming as though it was going to be quite a battle.

Sunset over the Gap that night was certainly a spectacle to behold. Similar to Uluru, the Ranges here turn amazing colours as the sun sets.

I bunked in as the sun went down to look over the next days route and see what lay in store. I'd be looking to make at least 25Km before sunset. The majority of the day would be ascent, with the exception of the last 3Km, descending to where I'd hope to make camp for the night.

Kings Canyon - Kata Tjuta - Uluru pt. 3

2011-10-15T18:02:00.000-07:00

Uluru

Our first real taste of Uluru - more commonly known to the western world as Ayers Rock - began with a visit to the Uluru - Kata Tjuta Cultural Centre, owned and run by the Anangu people. These aboriginal peoples are known as the keepers, or owners, of Uluru, and they are very happy and keen to share their knowledge and history with visitors.
After our self guided tour through the visitors centre, where we learned about the history of the aboriginals who inhabited the area, as well as their Dreamtime stories and significances of Uluru in their culture, it was time to get up close and personal with the famous monolith.

As it was already pretty late in the afternoon by the time we reach the base of Uluru. We were guided along one of short tracks called the Mala Walk, which features many old aboriginal sites and rock art.

Now, scientists and geologists have many explanations and theories describing and unfolding the mysteries behind Uluru, Kata Tjuta and Kings Canyon. But the aboriginals have their own explanations for all of these things. And I have to admit, I think I like the aboriginals explanations better.

Rather than talking about erosion and sediment and fluvial channels, the aboriginals have ancient stories from the "Dreamtime" that explain every significance in the area. Every rock form, crevasse, cave and green space has a significance and a story explaining its creation and being.

After our walk wrapped up, we headed for a lookout to grab a prime spot to watch the world famous Uluru Sunset! It is quite spectacular to watch the rock change colour as the sun sets. Such drastic changes in such a short period of time. It is quite a sight to see.

We spent the better part of the evening at the lookout, till well after dark. The full moon provided some very interesting photo opportunities. And while all of the other tour groups had arrived right at sunset and left instantly after, our crew arrived early to grab a prime spot, watched the entire sunset, ate dinner and stuck around much, much longer than anyone else. I almost feel sorry for the other people for missing out... Almost.

Finally we packed up and headed to make camp. It wouldn't be a long night, as we were waking in the wee ours of the morning to once again snag our prime spot for the sunrise view.

The nights were pretty cool, but not like many of the nights I had spent in Queensland - the coldest I was aware of had reached -5C. So these nights around Uluru were refreshing for me. But with a big fire rolling we all curled around with our swag and before we knew it, everyone was fast asleep except for myself and new friend Boris. Being our last night on the trip, and with such a large pile of firewood remaining we felt it was only right, our duty, to stay up and finish off the wood pile.

Morning has never come so early...

It was right up and at 'em the last morning of our trip. If I had checked the time I would say it had been around 4:30am. We rolled up our swags and had camped packed up surprisingly quick considering he hour of the morning.

It was great to spend those few nights out in the swags, not too, too cold, clear star-lit sky's and not a bug in sight. Though we were kept company by what I would have considered a small heard of aussie kangaroo mice. They were quite friendly little buggers.

So off we set for our lookout to watch the sunrise over Uluru - where we would also be having breakfast, and very much needed coffee. It was quite an experience all-in-all, and I have to give props to The Rock Tour for putting together such a well structured agenda.

Sunrise was nothing short of spectacular. Cameras went off like mad, here there and everywhere. And for a moment, I think everyone even forgot that they could see their own breath.

Once the sun had risen, we set off back to the base of the rock. We had the morning free to explore and wander some of the tails surrounding Uluru independently. This was our first chance to really get up and close for a little one-on-one time with one of Australia's oldest and most significant pieces of the countries culture and history.

Myself, and several others completed the entire base walk around the rock. The roughly 10Km loop is definitely the best way to take it all in here. There is so much to take in if a person is willing to open their eyes and their imaginations. Despite all the geological significances, it was the stories and the history of the aboriginals that caught me more than anything.

As I have said before, everyone experiences these place differently. Ten people visiting these places together can walk away in the end having had ten very different experiences. That is one of the beauties I discovered out here, but not just in the park, but the entire Outback. It holds something different for everyone. But little did I know just what the Outback had in store for me next...

Though one thing several of us did share was an encounter with two dingoes as we were walking the trail. They were so tame and in such good health that we mistook them for domestic dogs that had gotten loose from their owner. A bit father down the tail we discovered what we believed to be these dingoes den. Someone was certainly living there!

Kings Canyon - Kata Tjuta - Uluru pt. 2

2011-10-05T04:43:00.000-07:00

Kata Tjuta

Our second stop on the three part trip took us into Uluru - Kata Tjuta National Park to Kata Tjuta.

The English translation of Kata Tjuta from the Aboriginal language means "Many Heads". The aboriginals were very straight forward in the naming process, and for the most part called things as they saw them. Kata Tjuta is a large rock formation spanning nearly 22 square Km and does in fact look like several heads poking out of the ground. Also referredto as The Olgas, named after Mount Olga, the sites highest point.

It was still dark as we started packing up camp that morning. Orion's Belt as clear as day in the north eastern sky. It felt like I had barely even gotten my eyes closed when we were all woken by the crackling fire and the smell of coffee catching everyone's attention.
Several cups of coffee later we had camp pretty well cleared and were ready to make our way. Daylight was just coming on as we headed off.

It was an incredible sight to see as we approached The Olgas, jetting out of the ground, these massive rock domes towered over the landscape. Our trek began through the Valley of the Winds, passing between huge rock faces. Several of us commented on what an awesome climb it would be going up any part of the rocks. But, climbing is forbidden at this site, and it is strongly reinforced. Regardless, I was more than satisfied with a look by the end.

After we made our way through the entrance and into the center of the domes, the land opened up into lush (for the desert kind of lush), green rolling hills, with amazing rocky outcrops in the background. Everyone kept a sharp eye for snakes and any other critters we might spot as we wandered along the trail, through tall grass, under shade patches and over rocky terrain.

Now I don't know if it just me here, or if everyone gets sucked into the moment like I did here... again... But give me a whip, pistol and a cool hat and I would have felt like Indiana Jones diving in to yet another adventure.
Hmm... That happens a lot. I really need a cool hat.

You'll hear guides here talking about how places like Kata Tjuta and Uluru feel, and how everyone who visits may feel something different or significant. They are certainly right.

While I did hear some people comment on how they felt nothing at all around any of these ares, I know I sure did. What exactly it was, I'm not sure. But for those of us that did we all knew it, and though we couldn't really explain it we understood at least that we each knew it was there. Personally, and this comes not just from this outing, but my entire experience out here, it seems as though too many people spend their lives watching, and never spend any time looking at/for, or feeling what is around them. I was asked several times on our trip why I was so good at spotting animals and tracks, and I would just answer that I was looking for it.
The way the caverns closed in around certain areas definitely made it feel as though you were being watched I found. Dozens of small caves fill the rock walls all over the place. Even the rocks on the ground seemed to be watching you!

Seeing these places with a guided tour like ours really is the best way to spend your first experience. There is so much culture and history to the areas which otherwise would go unknown to the lone traveler. The aboriginals have a meaning and significance for everything. The rivers, the rocks, forests. And not just the items themselves, but their shape, markings, colour... It all has a purpose, a meaning. And to discover that so many people still share a connection to this meaning, the Dreamtime and the culture was, for me, quite pleasing and relieving to find out.

We didn't encounter too many critters on this trek, however, just before returning to the parking lot to make our way out I spotted a small lizard crouched in the rocks along the side of the trail. He was a little skittish at first, but warmed up to me quite quickly!

Soon after, we hit the dirt again and set off for a quick lunch before getting our first taste of Uluru (Ayers Rock).

Kings Canyon - Kata Tjuta - Uluru pt. 1

2011-10-03T05:25:00.000-07:00

Kings Canyon

I didn't waste any time in hitting the sights upon arriving in Alice Springs.

I had found out while still in Darwin that half of the Larapinta Trail - which I was intending to begin hiking right away on arriving in Alice Springs - had be burnt right out and was still at high risk of wildfires. By the time I arrived in Alice things hadn't changed.

So rather than sit around and wait for the tides to turn on the trail I decided it was time to see some sights and jumped in on a guided Camping tour to Uluru (Ayers Rock), Kings Canyon and Kata Tjuta (The Olgas).

The trip started off with a bang. The morning we were due to leave there was a huge thunder storm which was responsible for starting several fires in and around Alice Springs. Luckily things cleared up as we pulled away from town.

Because of the higher than average rainfall last year, more vegetation has grown across the and around the Red Center, creating high than average fuel for fires. And being the end of the dry season, things were DRY!
We passed miles and miles of blackened, scared land on the trip. Similar, I imagined, to what the Larapinta may look like at that moment.

Kings Canyon was first on our agenda of amazing sights. And it was, in short, spectacular! We hiked to the top of the canyon and along the 'Rim Walk' across some amazing landscape, at times treading only inches from the over 300m high cliff's edge.

Mid way around the canyon we descended into a valley known as The Garden of Eden. A tropical, lush forest leading to a permanent waterhole found deep in the valley. I was completely shocked when I found out I was the only person eager to dive into the waterhole. Such a peaceful, refreshing pool, on a hot active day, I wasn't saying no! So in I dove. I mean really, who wouldn't want to be able to say that they swam in the Garden of Eden? Apparently everyone but me? At least on that day.

Afterwords our trek continued back to the top of the canyon and across a long, dome-covered, sandstone plateau, where i spotted a giant Perentie sitting right beside our trail. I'm not sure how the rest of the group missed it, but this huge monitor lizard caught my eye instantly!

While Perenties have been known to reach lengths exceeding 8 feet, our boy was roughly four and a half to five feet long. These guys are very similar to the Goulds Goanna which I encountered many of in Queensland, but are much slimmer and apparently to see one in the wild is quite rare, as they are known to be extremely timid and shy. However, this particular monitor couldn't have been happier to pose, basking in the sunshine as I snapped away all the photo's I could. This could probably be classed as another foolish situation where I got far too close to something. The claws and teeth alone on these guys is enough to do a person in, never mind the fact that scientists believe that Perenties may produce a venomous bite to top it off.

One highlight of the tour for me was the amount of knowledge our guide, Karmen, had about bush medicines and wild food. Karmen and i hit it off very early into the trip exchanging tips, stories and experiences in the outback. She was just as eager to hear about how the Canadian wilderness compared to Australia's as I was to learn all I could get out of her on Oz.

The view as we descended back to the bottom of the canyon was breath taking. It, and the whole area we had passed through reminded me of something out of an Indiana Jones movie, or The Mummy. Absolutely amazing country.

We pulled into camp that night just after dark. Our group seemed to all connect very well, very early on. Everyone pitched in and pulled their weight right from the get go, and in only minutes our camp was shaping up nicely. We had a nice big fire rolling, plenty of firewood for the night and the next morning (Following the 3:1 rule - Gather as much wood as you think you need for a night, then triple it), swags rolling out in all directions and dinner as on.
A night under the outback stars, sitting by the fire wasn't a new experience for me by this time - it felt like home. But there was something about being there with new friends, sharing new experiences (and tell tales of many of my past experiences as well) and just being in the moment that was very refreshing, and as exciting as your very first camping trip.

The outback has been very good to me. It has taken me a long way, in what I must admit has been a much safer manor than I had anticipated. For that I am very grateful. And even though I chose the path I did... alone... Aware of the potential danger and anticipation of loneliness, I don't regret the decision, though to be able to share part of that experience, even though only a small fraction, made it all worth while.

As we all tucked in that night after a mighty feast of mince chili and rice over the open fire, kangaroo mice bouncing rigorously throughout our campsite, and the milky way high over head, I couldn't wait to find out what the following days had in store.

Recap pt.2 From Lochinvar

2011-09-23T19:08:00.000-07:00

Recap pt.2 From Lochinvar

Echidna Surprise!

After a long morning of breaking in wieners, Davie and I had just sat down for a much deserved cup of coffee – smoko as they call it – when the station owner’s wife showed up in a tissy. The water wasn’t working, a pipe must have burst. She asked if we would find and fix the problem. A fairly simple, quick task. Yup, we’d get right on it, after coffee.

Turns out, in order to locate the leak, someone, had to squeeze under the house and inch along the ground between floor joists up and down along the whole house. It wasn’t a short house! And you can guess who ‘someone’ was. Me! So off I went.

Luckily the water was running out at a pretty decent rate, enough to have made a sustaining puddle, from which I could hear the “drip, drip, drip”. As I inched up alongside the pipe, which had been cut miles too long to begin with, I found the leak. It was no ordinary leak, definitely not a burst from cold or pressure. I called for someone to toss me a torch to get a better look. Sure enough, the pipe was covered in bite marks over about a 3 foot section.

It hadn’t dawned on me till this point one bit all of the critters that could be living under there. The thoughts that quickly filled me head did seem to speed up the repair job though. But half way along the fixer-upper one of the hoses slipped out of my hand and began pour water into the hole in front of me. I put down my pliers and inched over the whole to reach for the pipe. My entire upper body covering the whole I got hold of the pipe again and rolled onto my side to finish the job when I noticed the tennis ball, which I had rolled into the hole earlier, starting to move a bit. I grabbed my torch for a closer look, praying that I hadn’t been lying in a snake’s nest, to find three giant echidna (kind of like an Aussie porcupine) lying in the hole. The same hole I had just strung myself across, dangling a mere 3” over these fellas.

Now, we all know that porcupines are not very vicious animals, and echidna are known to be quite sluggish and shy, but we all know what happens when a dog sticks his nose up to a porcupine for a closer sniff... he gets a snout full of quills! And since the last thing I wanted was a snout full of quills I made an executive decision that the job could be completed much more efficiently from the outside and that I should probably hurry up and get out of there, you know, ‘cause we had other work to do.

Interesting fact - Echidnas are an egg-laying mammal. One of only four extant species in the world - Along with the platypus. Who knew!

It Does NOT Taste Like Chicken

It seems the world is fascinated by the claim that so many things taste like chicken. I personally don’t see it, or well, taste it. In several different instances crossing Queensland, I heard people refer to many different animals all tasting like chicken. Not every white meat taste like chicken folks!

Snake, goanna, frog, yes are all white meat, but taste nothing like chicken! The meat may look quite similar once cooked, but the taste is very different. Unless you are just frying everything in heaps of butter, then it all just tastes like cooked butter... If you want the true taste nothing beats roasting over an open fire.

Personally I find snake reminds me of catfish, but that’s just me.

Interesting fact – Goanna’s have two different types of meat on them, white and red, in their tail and hind quarters.

Hog Tied

Working on cattle station for the first time meant learning all the ropes really, really quick. This included: how to muster properly – using formations and controlling the heard effectively; how to keep up in the draft ring; branding; and, how to hog tie a full sized bull without getting impaled or trampled.

Most of these things got some sort of brief explanation before we got started. Most of these things I was told we were doing before we started. Not the hog tie.

We had just finished up what had seemed like a pretty flawless muster. Just when I thought I could kick back for a quick breather and take in the morning’s good work, Davie flies past me on the bike heading back out into the paddock.

“Get up on side of him,” Davie yells over the two-way.

I had no idea what he was talking about. “Righto!” and off I went. Flying down the fence line to god only knew where. I cleared the brush line just in time to see the big bull break out at full speed from the trees heading away from me. On the far side Davie flew around headed straight for the bull.

Ok, now I think I kinda get it... almost. Kicking it up one more gear I headed in towards the bull, trying to follow Davies lead.

“Get up, get up!” he was yelling and waving an arm for me to move in.

Before I even knew what had happened, the bull was down, Davie was yelling for me to pin it down. Rather than ask questions I figured ‘what could it hurt’ (aside from getting kicked in the chest) and dove off my bike onto of the bull, and without even thinking, reached in, hauled his tail in and around a hind leg and heaved with all my might to keep him down while Davie tied the hind legs.

No sooner was that done than the bull kicked up, knocked me off and was standing pretty aggravated on three legs. Needless to say we wasted no time in putting the bikes between us and the bull and waited for the truck to pull up. When it did Davie scrambled to get the trailer set up to haul the bull on and prompted me to rope the bull and get ready to haul him in.

“Rope and haul?” I thought. Then it struck me why Davie had passed off this coil of rope earlier on. Joy, lets lasso an angry bull with a short rope. Good idea.

I was shocked at how easy it actually was. Whether it was just natural skill, or the fear of getting it wrong the first time and getting mauled, I made pretty quick work of getting the bull roped, and with a solid tug had him back down into a manageable position.

It wasn’t long before we had the bull on the trailer, tied down and were heading home for lunch. All in a mornings work.

Not bad for my first time. We had three other instances like this during my weeks on the station. Always a different situation. Always happening in the blink of an eye, and never an extra hand to hold the camera. But man what a rush.

Recap: Lochinvar to Darwin - Part 1

2011-09-18T04:14:00.000-07:00

Recap: Lochinvar to Darwin - Part 1

Working on a cattle station had its ups and downs. Many more ups than downs though. While I didn’t get very much time off away from work I did manage to find ways of making use of my time to turn work into more of an adventure than one may have thought possible.

As I mentioned before, Davie, the station Manager/Ringer was very helpful and extremely knowledgeable about the bush: wild foods, medicine, identification, you name it. I was very impressed.

I spent many afternoons quizzing him about different plants and animals we would stumble onto. He even began pointing out a lot on his own after a while. I think my sense of adventure rubbed off on him. He would get nearly as excited as I would when we would stumble onto a snake track or goanna hole.

I was given a 4-wheeler to use during my time on the station - For work and for play. This made getting away to the far reaches of the station much easier whenever I had a little time to kill.

I had a pack sitting beside the door ready to go for anytime it looked like the work day might finish up with daylight left to spare. Wasting no time I’d be off across the country side flat out to see what I could bump into in the fading light. Every good explorer knows that dusk is the best time to go searching for critters. They are all just poking their noses out for the night, AND there is just enough daylight left to hopefully snap a good picture or two in the process.

Everyday held no shortage of interesting and exciting elements. Hope you enjoy these highlights of the last two months...

Warning: The following may contain slightly disturbing and icky content... But this is real life folks.

Piggin’

How much more fun could you get in a day of complete and utter failure!

I was lucky enough to spend an afternoon with a local roo-shooter, Reece, who is also an avid wild pig hunter. Hunting pigs Aussie style is quite different than anything I have really seen, but completely up my alley!

There are no guns, or bows or firearms of any kind used with these guys got out for a day of piggin’. A good dog and a big knife is all you need to get the job done. I had the knife!

These guys spend the day cruising the river banks, fields and tree lines looking for tracks, poop, pig holes, any sign of animals in the area. When sign is found the dogs are put on the trail to track down the pig. If the trail is hot the chase is on! We had several exciting starts on trails with the dogs going wild, unfortunately none of them turned up any pigs in the end.

But, when the dogs get onto a trail and track down a pig, the run it down and corner, or pin it, and hold it until you can put that trust big knife to work.

While our day ended empty handed, just the thought of racing along through the trees with your dog – in hot pursuit of the pig – to down your catch with your bare hands is, well, well that’s just kind of epic, no?

I did make many attempts after that day to down a pig, but was eluded by the same huge porker every time. I think he could tell when I was coming, and if I was armed or not, as I would usually only catch sight of him with I was completely unarmed or was racing off to finish a job or round a mob of cattle.

Going Banana’s over Goannas

A LOT of people give me strange looks out here when I talk about goannas. Most people find them to be quite a filthy and disgusting animal – at least when eating them is in context. I suppose that is understandable when you have seen enough, watched them feeding and actually understand what they feed on. But, now fully educated on the subject, I still like the buggers!

So what is it that they feed on? Well I am glad you asked!

For the most part, the species that I encountered most often, the goulds goanna, feed on rotting, decaying animals. Yummy! There’s nothing quite like pulling up in front of a dead cow and finding a large lizard chowing down, buried waist deep in a rotting carcase.

Grilled goanna for dinner anyone? I suggest a back leg or the tail.

Goannas have been a crucial part of bush tucker for hundreds of years. It is a classic dish usually cooked by laying the whole lizard on hot coals and slowly roasting it whole. This is the traditional and probably best way to cook them, as the skin is very tough and protects the meat while cooking, then peels off effortlessly after cooking. But if fired lizard guts aren’t you thing then skinning and gutting them also does the trick, in which case it is recommended to roast them on a spit over a fire, or, if available, marinade the meat in vinegar and roast wrapped in foil (or leaves, whichever is handy!).

It was winter, the dry season, while I was at Lochinvar. Most reptiles were hibernating for several months in our area of South West Queensland. But who could blame them! I never would have expected that I would be waking up to frost every morning in Australia! Regardless, the odd goanna poked about on the warmer days in the earlier months, but as the season died and what you would class as spring came upon us, they were everywhere! Green goannas, blue goannas, yellow goannas, brown goannas! I was blown away!

Day 124

2011-09-18T04:06:00.000-07:00

Day 124
Wow, How have I kept count!

We are well into spring here in Alice Springs, and it's feeling like an Ontario summer heatwave.

I have just emerged from an incredible walk-a-bout across the West MacDonnell Ranges. While I did fall short of my sightly over ambitious goal of 450Km in 15 days, I feel like what I took away from the experience was exactly what I was intended to get.

The Larapinta Trail is a [roughly] 225Km track stretching from Alice Springs historic Telegraph Station across the West MacDonnell Ranges to the summit of Mount Sonder (1297m). It is now rated as one of the Worlds Premier hiking tracks, and I couldn't resist the chance to take it on! On average it takes 12 - 14 days to comfortably reach the end from Alice Springs. My goal was to reach the summit of Mount Sonder and return to Alice all within 15 days, [roughly] 450Km, carrying all of my food, and supplies, plus 5L of water as I set off each morning.

Sounds pretty keen, eh? Pretty stupid if you ask me! What kind of idiot takes on something like that? (Never mind the fact that we are sitting in the middle of desert country)

Well, that idiot would be me! Like they say, better an Ambitious Idiot than Ignorantly Stupid!

Ok, so maybe I'm the only one who says that, but it makes sense to me! After all where would we be with out overly ambitious yahoos doing rediculous thing? Probably over-crowding Europe...

The trail varies in grade from section to section, and was, I will admit, much more challenging than I ever imagined it would be. When they say very hard track they mean it! I crossed everything from sand flats, grasslands and mulga flats, to river beds, chasms and gorges, to some of the highest mountain peaks and challenging ridges and scrambles in the Northern Territory.

Over all it was an incredible experience. 7 days "gone bush" as the Aussies say. Every night camping out under the stars, just in time for the full moon to last my entire stint! There was, and still is a very high fire warning in effect, so a toasty fire to end me off every night was usually out of the question, though. In fact, I was actually two weeks late setting out on my expedition due to bush fires that tore through the Ranges the weekend I was due to arrive in Alice Springs. The effects of the fires were very harsh n some sections, every day I wandered through the burnt out country side, ash and char as far as the eye could see at times. But, thankfully there were some untouched areas, holding some of the most spectacular wildlife and vegetation I have ever seen.

But in the end, the heat caught up with me as a result of having to embark two weeks late, as well the weight of my pack played a big factor in my having to leave the trail early. Setting out from Alice Springs with near 30Kg in my bag was pretty stupid, and that kind of weight doesn't drop quickly on rationed food and constantly refilling water supplies.

Bruised, blistered and broken I sit here at Alice Lodge Backpackers happier and far more content than a pig in warm... well, you get the picture. A long story short, I am personally quite thrilled at where my trek took me, the things I saw and did and the awesome people I met.

Stay tuned for the detailed version of my trip, including some sweet photo's. But first - and I thank you for baring with me on this - to finish catching you up on my earlier adventures out of Queensland and Darwin!

Day 99

2011-09-04T15:36:00.000-07:00

Day 99

Its day 99, it’s been over 14 weeks since I arrived down under. It feels like it has been much longer already.

I have reached Darwin safely at last. Yet another change from my original itinerary, hopefully to prove as fulfilling as the last one!

I’m in the heart of croc country and the home of famous film croc Burt - Most famous for his role in Crocodile Dundee as The Crocodile. Pretty cool I’d say! And you’d think being in the land of crocs would make it easy for a person to get their hands on a little croc meat... Apparently not. The search continues.

Before leaving Lochinvar Cattle station I was offered a position on the station full time as station hand. I declined, anxious to continue on. At that point I was planning my next big move – reach Darwin to set up the details of my to-be epic trek across the west MacDonnell Ranges. 28 days across one of the world’s best ranked trials. Front to back, then back to front. Normally the full hike is about 12 days, but I want to hike in, then, hike back out, hence the 28 days.

But, as luck would have it, I received word yesterday that the area has been under great duress from high volumes of wild fires. At the moment nearly half of the trail is closed off and hikers are urged to stay clear for the time being. I should be receiving more information from the National Parks and Wildlife office tomorrow. Regardless, I leave Darwin on Tuesday, making my way to Alice Springs. So here’s fingers crossed that all pans out.

With very limited internet access during my time on the cattle station, maintaining regular blog entries was pretty tough. So stay tuned for a proper recap of my adventures down there as well as my venture north from Augathella to Darwin.

For now, it’s off to bed to rest for tomorrow’s day of deep sea Barramundi Fishing!

Day 67

2011-08-05T04:06:00.000-07:00

Day 67

It has certainly been a wild adventure staying and working on Lochinvar Cattle Station, roughly 60Km north of Augathella, Queensland. I have seen and done more here than I could have imagined, thanks to owners Peter and Milly and the station Ringer, Davie, who has been all too eager to help in my hunt for food sources and talk “bush life” with me on our long days in the yards.

My ankle has healed nicely from my encounter early in my stay with a rowdy bull, who pinned my leg to a yard gate during drafting one afternoon. Since then I have had several more close calls, but luckily no more injuries!

I have had the chance to sample several different bush foods while out here, including Kangaroo and cactus!

As were my findings earlier on when exploring the north east of New South Wales, many edible plants do require much preparation in order to be safe to eat. Leeching, baking, grinding and so on. It seems that certain areas cater much better to a long-term stay than a shorter, survival-type necessity. The land certainly provides every necessity to live, as long as you are willing to look and work a bit for it.

My findings have shown though that lizards, such as the frilled-neck, and goanna, and insects like the whichetty grub (or whichy grub as locals call it) and locust, prove to be the easiest food source to locate in most locations of this environment. That is, without a great deal of knowledge of the surrounding plant life. I should point out that these lizards, just like many (and most) animals in Australia are protected and hunting many of them is not permitted.

I was thrilled to encounter my first goanna just the other day. And since then, signs have been appearing quite regularly of their early rise from hibernation. This has also been true of the snakes. Due to recent high day time temperatures, many of these critters have become eager to begin roaming once again.

I will admit I was somewhat surprised at the sheer size of both the snakes and the goanna. While I have been quite aware that the northern-dwelling snakes, such as the pythons and boas can become enormous, the size of the brown and king browns we have been finding are wild! Averaging an easy five to six feet in length!

I am nearing the end of my stay at Lochinvar though, and will soon begin the long haul north towards Darwin. The over 2500Km journey should land me in Darwin in early September, assuming I may be able to hitch-hike with some degree of success from Mount Isa, about 1100Km from my current location. Crossing the Barkly Tablelands of Central Northern Territory may prove quite difficult on foot, as temperatures in that region are already seeing average daily’s in the low 30°C range.

Where the road leads from Darwin is uncertain - Either south to Alice Springs, or South West through the Kimberly to Broome. Where the road will lead between now and Darwin is also very uncertain, all I know, I will get there eventually.

Although I am having a blast out here, I am getting eager to get to Alice Springs as well. From there I am planning on trekking the Larapinta Trail through the MacDonnell Ranges. The roughly 225Km trail leads from the old Alice Springs Telegraph Station, west to Mount Sonder. My trek will last approximately 26 days, as I attempt the East to West route, then after a slight detour, return from West to East. On my return trip I will veer from the main path here and there, exploring some of the off-shoot trails scattered through the ranges.

500Km in 26 days, that’s the plan. Wish me luck!

Day 52 - Into the Wild

2011-07-18T02:44:00.000-07:00

Day 52

The first rains of the winter dry season fell here about two days ago. The first rains in over a month. It only lasted about 20 minutes, and was soaked up in a flash. It’s been damp and consistently cool the last three days though.

As the first stages of the cattle muster have come to a finish, tomorrow I plan to head out to put all I have learned about this area to the test. We won’t begin any more work for several days, allowing me plenty of time to wander and explore different survival techniques for the region and feast on whatever the land is willing to offer after the light rains. It is surprising how much life can spring from such little rain.

There are many resources around the area, lots of potential food – if you can find it and have time to properly prepare it. Like in many other areas of Australia, much of the potential food requires extensive preparation before it is safe to eat. Many plants and fruits harbour toxins which must be leeched out prior to consumption. As well, many plant species have close relatives which often occupy the same areas, or similar ones. You can never look too closely. The last thing I need is to be the inspiration of Into The Wild Part II, with a similar ending...

I’ll take a few basic supplies with me; my survival kit (containing a first aid kit, compass, JetScream whistle, Strike Force Flint; thermal blanket and signal mirror) and Remington Excursion knife, given to me by Ranger Tactical; snare wire; water bottle; and of course camera.

I have been experimenting here and there with alternative solutions to creating cordage to use in the field. Because it is so dry most materials are very brittle, making most dense grasses useless when put under any stress. With the Warrago River near by though, there is an abundance of reeds in areas, which have proven to hold up much better than any of the grasses or vines found in the open fields.

Being able to produce some sort of cordage in the field from raw materials is a huge asset. It can mean the difference between having your shelter remain standing in a wind storm and... well, not. As well it can come in handy for many other things. In the rainforest areas you can easily find different varieties of vines which will act as great cordage, some even capable of supporting heavy loads. As I mentioned before, many of the materials I have discovered here so far will NOT support much of a load at all. But let’s see what the fresh rains will have produced.

A few things I’ll have to keep in mind when I set out (so should anyone considering the same). Even though it is winter, and most reptiles in this area are hibernating, it is still very possible to come across snakes in this area – the King Brown and death Adder being two of the most common, and two of the most deadly in Australia.

The easiest way to avoid an encounter with a snake... Stay home. But since that’s not going to happen, be wary of walking in tall grass, especially around logs and fallen brush. Always keep your eyes sharp and be scanning the area in front of you and around. While most snakes will usually retreat when they feel vibrations of your approaching footsteps, not all will. The death adder for instance has been known to lie in the middle of bush tracks partially buried in the sand or leaves and will normally only strike when stepped on or grabbed. It is possible to stand right beside it and never know, as their behaviour is sluggish and quiet.

On that note, it’s time to hit the bush and see what else is out there and if I have learned enough about the environment here to survive it or not!

Day 45

2011-07-11T13:47:00.000-07:00

Day 45

It’s hard to believe it’s been 45 days already. I’m slipping into week seven. It’s even harder to believe it’s already been 12 days since I have left Brisbane.

I’m in the middle of the Queensland outback, this is the Australia I came looking for. Kangaroos are everywhere – the largest group I have seen being about 20 roos. We see them every day. They race the bikes from a distance, and watch carefully at your every move. I have also seen emus, wild pigs, camels, plain turkeys (which stand almost the size of an emu), blue-tonged lizard and many different birds

At the moment I am stationed about 800Km west of Brisbane, just north of Augathella, Qld, long the Warrago River. I am on Lochinvar Cattle station trying my hand the cattle life. It’s been quite an experience thus far. We began mustering cattle on motorbikes and 4-wheelers last week (most people don’t use horses for this anymore like we see in the movies, such as Australia, though the concept is the same). That’s right, become a bit of a modern cowboy I have for the moment!

Mornings come earlier than I thought ever possible, but 4am and I have began to get along. I’ve been placed riding tail while we push and muster – I am the last rider in the group of six that hold the ‘mob’ together on the way to the stock yards. It’s my job to keep the cattle moving at a steady pace.

After the muster the cattle are ‘drafted’ in the yards and separated into different herds based on age, type and ownership. This is done, here, in a somewhat still old-fashioned manner, by pushing the cattle one at a time into a small circular cage with many gates leading into different pens. Someone stands inside the cage as the cattle come through and guides them through the correct gate. I have also been given the job in the cage. It certainly keeps one on one’s toes! Some of these cattle are less than thrilled to be in the cage with you -as was the case with one particularly moody bull.

When this bull started getting too rowdy for comfort I made an attempt to jump up the gate and get out of the cage. Well, this bull decided he would help. Long story short; his head plus my leg, plus an eight foot steel fence equals... “Ouch!” But luckily I walked away with only a few bruises, scrapes and a bit of a sprained ankle, but the show must go on!

Being out on the station puts me right in the middle of what is classed as “Downs Country”. Arid grasslands fill miles of rolling hills with small scatterings of trees here and there. This is a great location for studying the terrain and gaining heaps of info and insight on the land and bush survival.

The station ringer, Davie, whom I work with most days, is your original outback bush man. He knows every inch of land here; what animals to find where, edible and nutritious plants, water sources, and how to use the land not only to survive, but to live. I’d say all-round, a good guy to have as a boss out here.

On a rather exciting and tasty note, I have been feeding very happily off fresh, wild kangaroo meet which I did in fact harvest (legally might I add) a few days ago. I am not sure what to compare it too, but they sure do have a lot of meat on them!

My gear has been getting a good work here. My Mountain Hardware Fluid 26 pack has been a huge help on the long days out in the fields far from camp. It holds all the gear I need for the full days out and about, and packs in tight thanks to the side and front compression straps for light short hauls. This leaves me with a streamline, versatile pack with no worries of load shifting while racing herds of running cattle on the bikes. This can be quite an issue with some packs with the use of a camelback water bladder. But this pack is definitely pulling its weight for me here.

I have definitely strayed slightly from my original itinerary, but I am enjoying the spontaneity and adventure that has come about so far. I am trying to not plan to far ahead for the time being. I have covered a lot of ground so far, but have a lot to go.

On a final note, it has been very VERY cold here. Many people are claiming it to be one of the coldest winters on record. We even had ice forming this morning on water pails. Even inland where the winter nights are known to be quite cool it has been unusually cold, as low as about -5 here some mornings. Thanks Matt and Dana for the heads up!

Happy Birthday Sarah!

Day 32 - A few photo's from my trek up the coast.

2011-06-28T21:27:00.000-07:00

Dinning on local cuisine. Wild New Zealand spinach I found along the shoreline north of Byron Bay. Yummy!

Camp. Tucked away offshore in the trees.

Me by the fire. Camped out on the beach near Pottsville, NSW. It was a very cold night.

Found this little critter scurrying up a bank of rocks along the Brisbane River. I believe this to be a species of Australian Eastern Water Dragon. Could make for a nice light lunch!

Day 30 - Brisbane

2011-06-26T19:37:00.000-07:00

Day 30

It was long haul from Byron Bay to Brisbane. Over the course of about five days I traveled approximately 165Km. Four out of five nights spent camped out along the beach.

I left Byron mid afternoon on the first day, making my way north along the beach – Destination Tweed Heads. The first day I took my time, making it just south of Brunswick Heads where I stopped, sure that I could find a spot to make my camp for the night. It’s a good thing I did too!

That night I feasted on a gourmet of boiled New Zealand Spinach I had picked earlier that day. It was, to my surprise, much better tasting than I had expected!

I had waited till almost dark to set up camp and till well after to get my fire lit so I wouldn’t attract too much attention. About 20’ in the bush off the beach I found a small clearing under some low growing trees and set up there. Using the last remaining light I pitched my tent in record time! I then scurried about to finish collecting enough firewood for the evening. I only needed enough to boil a small pot of water to cook the spinach.

Being winter, dark comes early. June 21 being the shortest day of the year was almost here, and it showed, 6:00PM and it was dark!

Turns out I had collected just enough wood for to finish cooking the spinach after building a decent bed of coals. Then it was off to bed.

The next day I awoke early and was quick to tear down and get on the move again. It was good two hours in the sun heading up the beach to Brunswick Heads, the soft sand not letting me move quite as quick as I had hoped. But never-the-less I made it into and past town and found my way back to the shoreline by noon. Once again it was off along the coast, an endless expanse of ocean to my right, temperate rainforests to my left - my own little sub-tropical paradise.

I was several more days heading up the coast, feeding on mainly Pigface, Spinach and on about day three, to my delight I stumbled upon a Mandarin Orange tree. Heaven!

The roughly 65Km route I had planned was definitely a great test of both myself and my pack. But before I could make it into Tweed Heads I had to detour back onto the road side for a while, and was almost instantly offered a ride north. Since I had no real itinerary I accepted the ride and found myself being dropped off just south of Miami, near Burleigh Heads. Reassuring me there were many, many backpacker hostels all around, I was left to wander town. I found out very quickly there were, in fact, NO such things within 15-20Km. SO I walked to the north end of Miami and bunked in a the first and cheapest little motel I could.

I found myself in a similar situation that I would have had I tried to walk out of Sydney. One town becomes the next. No chance of pitching a tent and no chance of hitch-hiking. So after a hot shower and a chance to rest my body I set out first thing the net morning for Brisbane. I walked for eight hours, trudging from Miami almost right to Pimpama, 40Kms. Finally I was offered a ride right into Brisbane where I am now.

Thanks to strained tendons in my ankle I am laying low for another few days while I plan the next stage of the trek. An opportunity has risen to travel about 800Km west in a remote cattle station near Augathella, Queensland. Finally, the real outback! from there I will make the decision to either backtrack somewhat to the coast, to Fraser Island, and then continue on to Cairns, or to continue heading west to Alice Spring seeing as I will be half way there already. My timeline may shift slightly, putting me in Cairns for late August if I take that route. Though landing me in Alice almost right on schedule if I continue west.

*As many of you may have noticed and already become aware, Google Adsense is no longer operating on this site. Google decided that the amount of traffic generating from my blog was due to "Suspicious Activity", and after appealing to their board they decided to remove the program from my blog, feeling I was abusing their system. Just to clear that up with anyone who might have been wondering.

Day 20 - Arrive in Byron Bay

2011-06-17T04:39:00.000-07:00

Day 20

I arrived in Byron Bay tonight at about 7:30PM, marking 770Km I have traveled in the last three weeks. Hitch-hiking has been so effective I have actually had to slow down my pace a bit and spend a bit more time in town and a few days less on the road. Otherwise, I may be nearly in Cairns by now!

Since leaving Coffs Harbour I have spent nearly a week in the Grafton area, between a few nights where I was taken in by Wayne and Jean Gadke - parents of a good friend of mine in Calgary. Thanks for that connection Matt!
After a great couple of days there I was offered a Wwoofing position for a few more days with another connection provided to me by the Gadkes' son Matt.

                    - Wwoofing is a type of work-stay employment. Where "wwoofers" are given
                      accommodations and meals in exchange for working a few hours each day. Work type and
                      length varies from farm to farm, but the premiss is always the same. Usually found on organic
                      and cattle farms, Wwoofing originated in England in 1972, and farms can now be found all
                      around the world.

I spent several nights Wwoofing with Tim and his dog Gandhi. Even though we only had one day without torrential rains, it was still good to get my hands dirty and lend a hand for a bit. We spent an entire day pulling and cutting wild peach plants which are apparently very toxic. They resulted in deaths of two cows after they started feeding on them early last week.

I was also introduced to Black Beans which can be found commonly along river banks throughout the temperate rainforests around Oz. The seeds of these gigantic pods are edible, though they require about 10-14 days preparation before consumption to ensure that they are thoroughly rid of their toxins. The aboriginals used to eat these seeds after soaking them for at least 10 days (14 is recommended), then either cutting them into slices and baking them, or drying and grinding them into a flower like powder.
Unfortunately I did not have 14 days to prepare any of the huge bundle I came across - each measuring at about 6-8" long, but will keep them in mind for future reference.

Black Bean Pod and Seeds

I was lucky to have had the opportunities I did in the Grafton area, as we have experienced nearly 2 weeks straight of harsh rain. I made my departure (or escape I suppose) from Grafton just in time. Due to the harsh rains many roads were flooded and washed out, and even several days later now I am still hearing about flooding and road closures all over the southern coast.

Between Grafton and Byron Bay was Ballina. I caught a ride outside of Grafton with a couple and offered a place to stay for the night. This quickly turned into a great opportunity, and I was offered several nights stay with Chris and Emma and their two kids in exchange for a few days work with them.

Which brings us to Byron Bay...

Day 11 - Coffs Harbor

2011-06-06T16:58:00.000-07:00

Day 11

Coffs has treated me well. I have made new friends, and saw my first wild Kangaroos!

It has become apparent that I will be hitch-hiking much of the way up the East Coast, working my way through the national parks as much as possible, as it is much easier to find suitable area for pitching a tent rather than along the main highway.

In 11 days I have seen large cities, small towns, open fields of cattle, subtropical rainforests and muddy mangrove swaps. I have yet to cross paths with any snakes, not that I am complaining. Though I have seen several different types of spiders and as mentioned Kangaroos.
I find it quite funny really, in Canada we hear about kangaroos down in Oz and think of wide open ranges, and groups of kangaroos running through the wild outback. When in all reality, they are found in very populated areas. Here in Coffs Harbor for example, we spotted well over a dozen in a small developed community on the north end of town grazing on front lawns and beside houses. Kangaroos here and to elk in Banff.
Never-the-less it was exciting to see them. As well it is the migratory season for Humpback Whales here. I managed to spot one surface quite far off shore from Mutton bird Island the other evening. It is also a regular occurrence here to see manta rays and giant sea turtles just off shore.

I am learning a lot about the country, and have much much more to learn still. As assumed, the East Coast leg of my journey is far more civilized then what is to come when I head West through Central Queensland. It is becoming slightly more apparent to me why so many backpackers travel Australia by renting a van, or for those sticking to the East coast, as many do, taking a bus.

I am excited to see what awaits me. Today I leave for Grafton, only about 85Km north of my current location. From there I will head for Byron Bay - where I expect to be by Saturday.

And the adventure continues...

Goodbye Sydney

2011-05-31T18:15:00.000-07:00

Day 5 begins.

Sydney has treated me well, as have the people in it. It was a short stay for this leg, but I will return after the outback.

I made great new friends, Ariel and Mandy, as mentioned. I owe them a lot of thanks for helping me get my footing after landing in this crazy new world. Sydney is an interesting place. Many things are very different here than in Canada - internet access being a big one. Not many people are on home based internet connections it seems, but rather pre-paid wireless internet sticks.

I had a great backstage tour of the Sydney Opera house yesterday thanks to an old friend I graduated from The Ontario Institute of Audio Recording Technology with, Matt Giusti. It was an awesome experience. In my opinion, a much better way to see the landmark than a paid guided tour. Vivd Fest is on this week here, so the place was hustling and bustle with stage crews getting prepped.

Now I make my way to Newcastle via train. My last trip by public transit out of Sydney. Its a 158Km trip, which will give me a solid start on the some 3000Km trek up the coastline. After only a night in Newcastle I will begin my trek towards Coffs Harbor, where I will hopefully spend a few days to watch the Humpback Whale migration taking place right now.

I have nearly all my supplies now, all that's left if cooking fuel and fishing line which I will get in Newcastle of Coffs. I found both books I was searching for and an excellent map for my route. The books are bush survival type guides on edible plants and animals in Australia. They are (and I highly recommend them to anyone thinking of doing a similar trip to mine); the Bush Tucker Field Guide, by Les Hiddins, and Edible Wild Food Plants of Australia, by Tim Low.

These books are now my survival guides, my cookbooks, the centre of my survival. Along with these two books I have a third, Dangerous Creatures. This book outlines all the most deadly animals in australia, how to identify them, and how to treat their wounds.

So here I go, with my feet on the ground, to face the lonely continent, across the wilderness, of Australia.

Welcome to Oz

2011-05-28T20:27:00.000-07:00

Here I am, Sydney, Australia – The other side of the world.

We landed about 8:30am yesterday morning. It was a much quicker process through customs than I had imagined – No complaints here.

It’s a different feel down here, the people have a different vibe. Everyone, not just the Aussies, are very friendly and generous. Not even half an hour off the plane I encountered this when a very nice German girl approached to and asked if I was taking the train into town. I told her the truth, “I don’t have any idea where I am going.” She smiled and handed me a small, yellow card holder, inside were two transit tickets, valid for the next three days. I had money, I had transportation, I had a plan.

After orienting myself and checking map routes I made my way into the city. It didn’t take long to get used to get a handle on train procedures – although having two identical cards that do completely different tasks is still a little confusing.

Later in the afternoon I met up with my new friends Ariel and Mandy, whom I had met through Couchsurfing.org. They were eager to show me around and things started off great. We explored the area surrounding them a bit, had a Thai dinner, an began making plans for the rest of the evening. Plans wouldn’t take us too far though. A night out on the town quickly turned into a much-needed very, very long nap.

I’ll be leaving Sydney in other two or three days. The trip up the coast will be a gong show. Thanks to Sydney’s train system I should be able to make good time along the way. I expect to reach Cairns by roughly August 1st.

For now though, its off to pick up the last of my supplies, gather some information on the lay of the land, and get exploring!

Final Countdown and NEW Sponsors!

2011-05-25T16:48:00.000-07:00

3 Days till Australia!

As I sit here sorting my gear one last time, dozens of thoughts fly through my mind - I can't rush it - I can't forget ANYTHING.
I'm dropping gear, lightening my load - again.

Another sponsorship has come through with some great new gear. Mad Outfitters, located in Barry's Bay, Ontario has set me up with a great OR Fleece and Columbia Quick-Dry Pants. As well, Ranger Tactical, who was the first to jump on board with the Adventure, has set me up with two fantastic knives on top of the gear they had already provided. The Remington Excursion - a great tough, all purpose utility knife, and the Tailwind Assisted Opener from United Cutlery - easy opening, one-handed action makes this a key tool to have on hand.

The final chapter in preparation began about a week ago, when I arrived in Ontario. In a mad scramble I still was moving out of my house in Calgary the MORNING of my flight to Ontario. But we managed, fitting it all into a single 5'x5'x8' storage locker. And off to Ottawa.
The remainder of my gear met me here over the last week - A sleeping mat from Exped and a set of base layers courtesy of Icebreaker Canada.

Its a relief to be able to sit back look at my kit and know I have more gear than I need sitting in front of me. So back to it - cut, cut, cut!

15 Days: Gear Selection - How to Choose a Pack

2011-05-11T07:59:00.000-07:00

3 Days till Ottawa.
15 Days till Sydney.

With only two weeks left in Calgary I can really feel the pressure. Still so much to do. Luckily I have accumulated near all of my gear now, with only a few small items left. The big one this past week was my pack finally arriving. I decided upon the Atmos 50 by Osprey as my travel pack, with a Fluid 26 from Mountain Hardware as my day pack for around town, and shorter over night trips and adventures where I can (or need to) leave the 50L behind.

Choosing the right pack is probably one of the top two most important decisions you can make when gearing up for a trip - with your choice of footwear coming first. Many different facts play into choosing your pack; trip length, climate, trip style (resort skiing v.s. long-haul backpacking), what gear you take with you, and your body shape/size.

Because of the nature of my endeavor, I took many factors into consideration when choosing my pack -
These were; Weight - I need the minimal weight possible for a long period of time, Comfort - I need a well ventilated, comfortable pack to handle the warm, humid climate over a long period of time, Versatile - a pack that can change as quickly as I will, while taking the weight factor into consideration. Last, I wanted Simplicity - a slick, simple bag, where less is more.

I do get many looks of bewilderment and confusion when I tell many people that I am wandering into the Australian Outback for a year with only a 50L main pack. Though, after the first few test runs of my stuffed pack, I have found that if desperation called, I could get away with even lass space... Its pushing it, but it is possible. 50L is comfortable, and leaves me with space for collecting along the way.

So lets take a look at each factor one-by-one and see how the Atmos 50L meets these needs.

Weight: Weighting in at only 3Lbs 3oz, the Atmos offers a fast-and-light feel with more than enough storage space. Compared to many typical backpacking packs which can rage up to 8Lbs or more, the Atmos 50 weighs in 9oz LIGHTER than my tent.

Comfort: The trampoline-style back panel on the Atmos series offers great airflow between your back and the pack itself, reducing heat and sweat. Also, the light weight, yet sturdy, fixed hip belt and shoulder harness offer optimal comfort over the long hauls while keeping bulk and weight to a minimum. Though not everyone's body's are built the same, and some packs simply won't fit everyone, the Atmos 50L fits like a glove. For me, it slips on and feels more natural than most packs of this nature.

Versatile: A year in the Outback? Anything can happen, at any moment. The Atmos 50 offers several quick-adjust features, such as; a removable top pocket, InsideOut side-Compression straps, removable Sleeping bag straps and gear loops - simple features, but effective in the field.

Simplicity: This is Ospreys "Superlight Backpacking/Active Adventure" pack. It was designed to help you move quickly without sacrificing comfort. A fixed hip belt and shoulder harness cut weight, but also eliminate maintenance points on the bag. As mentioned earlier, side compression straps help keep the pack snug and streamline, and stop your load from shifting as the trip progresses.

So all-in-all, the Atmos 50 stacks up to be a great choice for the trip. Super light and simple, but still comfortable and versatile. Lets see how it does in the field!

29 Days - Gear selection: How to Choose a Tent

2011-04-27T07:39:00.000-07:00

29 Days till Australia
17 Days till Ontario.

With only three weeks left in Calgary the final crunch is on. I am still collecting the remaining pieces of my kit - several more pieces have arrived over the last few weeks. Most excitingly, my tent has arrived!

After weeks of deliberation, "humming and hawing", I have decided, last minute, upon taking The North Face Meso 22 rather than the Marmot Eos 1P which I had originally planned to take.

So why the last minute change?

Well, lets break down my actual needs and requirements in a tent; I need it to be super light weight, as I am backpacking for a year with it. Highly compressible, as storage space between my two packs is limited. Good ventilation will be key on the hot nights, as well as during mid day when it will be too hot to trek. Also, this will be my home for the next year, I need a comfortable living space for me and my gear.

Lets look at each of these needs individually and see how the two tents differ, and why I made the decision I did.

Light Weight: There is no doubt these are two very light weight tents. Full no-see-um-net mesh canopy cuts tones of weight from both these tents.
           The North Face Meso 22: Trail Weight - 3lbs 12 oz
   Marmot Eos 1P: Trail Weight - 3lbs 3oz

Highly Compressible/Compactable: By storing the tent poles/pegs on the outside of my pack, and placing the tent in a compression sack, the total packed size can shrink to as little as half the original packed size or less - Taking up way less space - about the size of a football.

Ventilation: The full No-see-um-net mesh canopy offers constant air circulation through the tent, where as many of the solo backpacker tents I had looked at originally offered very low ventilation, and some none at all. Ventilation is key for the Outback for those warmer nights and the hot hot days where shade and shelter are a must during peak hours - where travel is done early and late in the day.

Comfortable Living Space: While the Eos 1P is definitely the lighter of the two tents, its free standing design is not intended for extended use where real living space inside the tent in necessary day-to-day. However, the design of the Meso 22 is quite the opposite. The three pole design actually increases comfort and capacity of the living space inside the tent. This is the main reason for my last minute switch to this tent.

   The North Face Meso 22: Floor area - 29 square ft.
                                                     Vestibule area - 13 square ft.

           Marmot Eos 1P: Floor area - 22.8 square ft
                                     Vestibule area - 6.5 square ft.

Conclusion
Though the Meso 22 weighs in a whole 9oz heavier than the Eos 1P, I believe it will be the better choice for the trip. Double the vestibule size offers lots more room to store gear outside, leaving me with ample room inside - in both floor space and height to sit up, stretch out, and relax.
I can deal with the extra 9oz to carry knowing that my new home-away-from-home will be just that... My new Home.

1 Month, 22 days - Gear selection: How to Choose a Sleeping Bag

2011-04-04T08:11:00.000-07:00

1 Month, 10 days till Ottawa.
1 Month, 22 days till Australia.

It has been a slightly slower week - recovering from some form of food poisoning or flu. Although, I did receive my sleeping bag this past week from Marmot!

Choosing the right gear for a trip can be a very tricky task. It can be crucial to have appropriate gear for your trip. For the new adventurer it can be an even more daunting task, however I find it quite exciting.

For a longer, more adventurous trip, such as my own, there are slightly different requirements for gear selection as opposed to, say, 3 weeks of guided tours and resorts. Over the next few weeks I'll walk though each piece of gear I have selected and why I picked that piece. I will later follow up on these with performance reviews from in the field on how my choices have fared out.

Today I would like to focus on my sleeping bag selection - Marmot's Hydrogen 30F.
So why this bag? Lets go through what we know about the trip ahead and what it will require.
Australia's climate ranges everywhere from hot, humid tropical forests, to dry deserts, to snow capped peaks in the rightfully named, Snow Mountains. I need a bag that will be versatile. Temperatures in the outback can be blistering in the summer sun, but during winter months can drop well below freezing. I need a bag that can keep me comfortable and warm. I am traveling a very long distance, for a long time, by foot. I need a small, ultra light load in my pack.

So how does the Marmot Hydrogen 30F meet these needs for me?

Versatile: - This bag offers a 30F/-1C temperature rating as its "lower limit" - the lowest temperature where the standard man will have a comfortable nights sleep. It is unlikely that I will see temperatures in the range of -10C or lower, very unlikely, however the bag has an "extreme limit" of -17C. This represents the survival rating for the average woman in a survival situation. Considering the average man has a warmer core body temperature than the average woman, and knowing that I personally am a human furnace, this is a safe limit.
Temperatures around -1C to -4C is almost a guarantee as I will be spending the winter in the outback - expecting cool, dry nights.

Size/Weight: - The Hydrogen is stuffed with an 850-fill goose down. Very light, highly packable. This, combined with a Nylon Ripstop DWR face fabric (weighing in at a whooping 1.2 oz/yd), gives me a super lightweight, ultra packable, yet durable bag. A total weight just under 1 pound, 8 oz. Stuff-able to the size of a small football.

Comfort: Down is a highly breathable insulator. I will see cold nights in the outback, but I will also see warm (if not hot) humid nights along the coast. When no insulation is needed at night the Hydrogen will still make a great mattress, offering breathability and comfort you would not get from just an inflatable mattress.

Overall the Hydrogen stands to be a good choice for the trip. However, my decision was not made without taking some factors into consideration.
This bag is filled with down, and even though it is covered by a Ripstop DWR (Durable Water Repellent) outer fabric, there is still the possibility of the down getting wet. And we all know that down does not hold up well when wet, unlike many high-end synthetics. The down clumps together, loses its loft and heat retention capability, rendering it pretty much useless. In the wild there are no driers to restore your bag quickly.
This was taken into consideration when I selected this bag, and is a risk I left comfortable taking. If you don't feel confident that you can keep you sleeping bag dry throughout your trip, a synthetic filled bag may be the better choice - or at very least a waterproof compression sack to store it in, such as I will be doing.

So will my selection prove to be the right one? Only time will tell.

1 Month, 29 days - Sponsorship!

2011-03-28T10:11:00.000-07:00

1 Month, 29 days till Australia.
1 Month, 16 days till Ontario.

I'm thrilled to announce, that after several weeks of hard work, late nights and extra early mornings, that the sponsorship hunt has begun to prove successful!
Calgary based, Ranger Tactical (http://rangertactical.com/) have begun setting me up with some of their great new survival gear to test in the Outback! These guys specialize in Tactical/Survival/Rescue gear, so needles to say, I think I am in good hands.

Stay tuned for more details, as this is only the beginning. I will be revealing what gear they are sending with me in the weeks to come. Full reviews of each piece of gear will follow from the field, once I begin the trek.

Things have come a long way in the last week, and with two months to go yet, a lot more is in store before I even board the plane. My travel pack and sleeping bag are on order... Finally. I have chosen Osprey's Atmos 50 as my main pack, and Marmot's Hydrogen as my sleeping bag.

I still have a good chunk of gear to pull together - but considering how much I am taking in whole, it is very little.

I've paid my last full months rent check. Soon my phone contract will end. I begin to pack away the last near four years into storage. Still so much to do in what feels like so little time.

Lastly, I want to give a quick shout out to Roger Brunt, of Salt Spring Island, BC. Roger is the founder of the North American School of Outdoor Writing - quite an accomplished outdoor writer. He's been a tremendous help in getting this whole project moving. Thanks Roger.
I highly recommend anyone considering an interest in writing as a hobby or a career check his school out. www.nasow.com